Reduced Risk of Hyperkalemia During Treatment of Heart Failure With Mineralocorticoid Receptor Antagonists by Use of Sacubitril/Valsartan Compared With Enalapril
A Secondary Analysis of the PARADIGM-HF Trial

Background

Current treatment guidelines recommend additional use of an MRA for most HFrEF patients who remain symptomatic despite treatment with β-blockers and inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system [1,2]. However, the use of MRAs is limited in clinical practice, due to concerns about the elevated risk of hyperkalaemia, particularly in patients with chronic kidney disease [3,4].
In the PARADIGM-HF trial, patients with symptomatic HFrEF randomly assigned to sacubitril/valsartan had lower rates of death and HF hospitalisation compared to those randomly assigned to enalapril [5].
In this post-randomisation examination of hyperkalaemia in PARADIGM-HF patients, it was evaluated whether treatment with sacubitril/valsartan might reduce the risk of hyperkalaemia associated with the use of MRAs. At baseline, 4671 patients received an MRA. Of those, 2271 received sacubitril/valsartan and 2400 received enalapril.

Main results

Compared with participants not taking an MRA at baseline, participants taking an MRA at baseline were younger, had a lower EF, lower SBP, less severe ischemic heart disease, greater likelihood of prior hospitalisation for HF, and more advanced HF symptoms.

Including both patients on MRA at baseline and those who initiated MRA therapy during the trial, the risk of subsequent severe hyperkalaemia was more common among those randomly assigned to enalapril than those assigned to sacubitril/valsartan (3.3 vs 2.3 per 100 PY; HR: 1.43; 95% CI: 1.13-1.81; P = 0.003).

Conclusion

In a post-randomisation analysis of hyperkalaemia in the PARADIGM-HF trial, neprilysin inhibition attenuated the risk of hyperkalaemia when MRAs were combined with other inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system in patients with HFrEF. These data support the use of sacubitril/valsartan for suitable HFrEF patients on MRAs in clinical practice.